Abstract
Among partly mixed collection of skeletal remains excavated in the house called “Casa di Polibio” skeletons of 13 individuals were re-assembled and identified. There were 3 adult males, 3 adult females of various ages, 4 boys, 1 girl, child of unknown sex and one foetus in the last month of intrauterine life. The foetus was associated with the skeleton of a young (16–18 years) female whose bones are stained green-blue-black, probably by the jewellery or costume. Craniometric, odontometric, and osteometric data, together with reconstruction of stature are presented. Besides a mild case of torticollis in a young adult male no special pathologies were found. Enamel hypoplasia was frequent (87.5%). Presence of dental calculus on teeth of practically all individuals, frequent dental caries (63.6% of individuals), and moderate tooth wear indicate diet of well-cooked foods rich in carbohydrates. On grounds of age and biological characteristics it may be suggested that the group included older parents, their children, eldest son and his pregnant young wife plus a pair of domestics. Other possibilities include three adult couples: grandparents, parents and newlywed eldest daughter and her husband. Final resolution of family relationships must await full analysis of metric data and the DNA analysis. It seems that the group is representative of a Pompeian household: many children born approximately 3 years apart, early age at marriage, good food, relative freedom from disfiguring disease.
Similar content being viewed by others
Literature cited
Acsadi G, and Nemeskeri J 1970History of Human Life Span and Mortality, Akademiai Kiadó, Budapest
Fazekas I Gy, Kosa F 1978,Forensic Fetal Osteology, Akademiai Kiadó, Budapest.
Henneberg M, and Henneberg RJ 1990Biological characteristics of the population in the chora, In: The Pantanello Necropolis 1982–1989, An Interim Report, edited by JC Carter, University of Texas Press, Austin, Texas, pp 76–92
Henneberg M, Henneberg RJ, and Carter JC 1992Health in colonial Metaponto, National Geographic Research and Exploration 8: 446–459
Henneberg M, and Henneberg RJ 1996Biological characteristics of the population in the chora of Metaponto based on analysis of skeletal remains, in: JC Carter (ed.) The Chora of Metaponto: The Necropoleis, University of Texas Press, Austin (in print)
Henneberg RJ 1991Dental caries, in: R Dulbecco (ed.) Encyclopedia of Human Biology, Vol. 2, Academic Press, San Diego, pp 805–815.
Krogman WM, and Iscan MY 1986Human Skeleton in Forensic Medicine, CC Thomas, Springfield, Illinois
Loth SR, and Henneberg M 1996aMandibular ramus flexure: A new morphologic indicator of sexual dimorphism in the human skeleton, American Journal of Physical Anthropology 99: 473–485
Loth SR, and Henneberg M 1996bThe Taung child — it’s a boy ! Sexually dimorphic morphology in the immature human mandible and its application to fossil hominids, American Journal of Physical Anthropology Supplement 22: 152
Loth SR, and Iscan MY 1994Morphological indicators of skeletal aging: Implications for paleodemography and paleogerontology, In Biological Anthropology and Aging: perspectives on Human Variation over the Life Span, edited by Crews DE and Garruto RM, Oxford University Press, New York, pp 394–425
Malinowski A, and Wolanski N 1988,Metody badan w biologii czlowieka, PWN, Warsaw.
Martin R, and Saller K 1957,Lehrbuch der Anthropologie, G Fisher, Stuttgart
Pinto-Cisternas J, Moggi-Cecchi J, and Pacciani E 1995A morphological variant of the permanent upper lateral incisor in two Tuscan samples from different periods, in: Moggi Cecchi J (ed.) Aspects of Dental Biology: Palaeontology, Anthropology and Evolution, International Institute for the Study of Man, Florence, pp 333–339
Trotter M, and Gleser GC 1952Estimation of stature from long bones of American Whites and Negroes, American Journal of Physical Anthropology 10: 463–514
Trotter M, and Gleser GC 1977Corrigenda: Estimation of stature from long limb bones of American Whites and Negroes, American Journal of Physical Anthropology 47: 355–356
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Henneberg, M., Henneberg, R.J. & Ciarallo, A. Skeletal material from the house of C iulius polybius in Pompeii, 79 AD. Hum. Evol. 11, 249–259 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02436628
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02436628